


Still Alive

by MaraSenpai1997



Series: Every Cloud has a Silver Lining [1]
Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Comfort, Coming Out, First Kiss, Fluff, Friendship, Light Angst, Love Confessions, M/M, Making Out, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-26
Updated: 2016-12-26
Packaged: 2018-09-12 09:49:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,790
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9066526
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaraSenpai1997/pseuds/MaraSenpai1997
Summary: If someone had asked Leo how he had planned his confession to his true love, it wouldn't definitely  be in a hospital, in a foreign country, after he had collapsed on the ice. But it seemed that faith had decided that this was the perfect setting for an awkward love confession.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Aaaaaaaah, it's finally done. Is spend three entire days working on this. Though, to be fair, I spend most of the last two days editing. This originally was +10k, then it was narrowed down to +6k because my writing was garbage. But I'm happy with the result, though it's probably awkward at best. (The title is so bad... I swear, can I cringe somewhere in the corner?)  
>  **Edit:** Congratulations to myself for mistagging. Suddenly Leo x Yuuri has become a paring. That's why I should pay attention when I'm creating a fic (though I admittedly struggle with tagging, an awful lot. Like the tags don't work along- this isn't an EmiMike centred fic, but it seems that my tags have something else in mind.)

If he had to be honest, he had experienced better mornings. For starters, he usually didn’t wake up with a headache, nor with his room smelling chemically clean. Opening his eyes little by little, Leo braced himself against the brightness of the sun. In result, he blinked in surprise to see that the room was dimly lit. And, it wasn’t his room.

The ceiling lacked its ceiling fan, which usually proceeded to make a humming noise that Leo had gotten accustomed to. And while his mother surely could have removed the fan, the room still didn’t sit right with him. The smell, the humming of unfamiliar machinery, it all didn’t seem to add up.

Against his better judgement, Leo got himself into a sitting position, shifting his cushions around so they would support his back. There wasn’t even a bedhead to support his back, it was just a bare wall and steel bars from the bedframe. Trying to get comfortable, Leo took a nervous look around the room.

He was in a hospital. There was no doubt about that. The white, clean walls, the stale smell of equipment and cleaning products. Squeezing his eyes shut, Leo tried to shake off his throbbing headache. This idea might have made his headache worse. He was sure that his throbbing head and the hospital probably had something to do with one another, but he just couldn’t connect the dots.

As his headache temporarily grew less, Leo finally opened his eyes again, adjusting them to the subtle hospital lights. His nightstand was flooded with cards, withering flowers and even a few stuffed animals. His phone was amongst the pile of get-well gifts, fully charged. What didn’t fit on the nightstand was stuffed in a bag that stood next to the night stand. And, to his surprise, even the bag was already nearing spilling point. What had happened that made so many people worry? Had he a heart-attack or something?

His gaze moved around the room, taking in the bare surrounding. Eventually, his gaze settled down on the lone chair in the room, stuffed away in the corner. The seat was occupied by a small person, probably not much tall than 5’3”. Messy, light brown peeked from the blanket the person was sleeping under, followed by pale skin and faint freckles.

_Guang Hong._

But why was he here? Say, if Leo actually had ended up the hospital because of an injury, why would Guang Hong be there? America was on the other side of the world, and it wasn’t like Guang Hong’s presence would bring much comfort or would help much with his recovery. And not to mention the flight bill.

His head began to throb again, making him wince in the process. But with his growing headache came his previously missing memories, and everything fell into place. He wasn’t in America; he was in  _China_  of all places. And, not only that, he had collapsed right on the ice, after finishing his free-skate. And, noting the headache, he probably had landed on his head, knocking him out cold and probably spooking everyone in the process.

Not wanting to wake Guang Hong up, he wasn’t ready to worry his friend yet, Leo plucked his phone off the charge, mentally noting that he should thank Guang Hong for that, and unlocked the screen. His stomach dropped as he saw the date. He had been out cold for over a week, the NHK Trophy already had taken place. This meant that the finalists were known by now.

Scrolling through the get well wished from fans, family and friends alike, Leo didn’t notice Guang Hong stirring awake. With a soft thud, the heavy blanket that had been thrown over him dropped on the ground, making Leo look up from his phone. Their eyes met, Guang Hong’s brown eyes were sleep-clouded and slightly hooded. But the sleepy expression didn’t last long, as Guang Hong basically shot out of the chair a few seconds later, nearly throwing himself on Leo.

Leo winced as his head gently bumped against the wall, making the headache worse. But he hadn’t it in him to tell Guang Hong to let go- his friend must have worried endlessly. For as long as Leo had known Guang Hong, the Chinese always had been a bit of a worrywart, worrying more than what was necessary. And Leo’s sudden collapse probably had spooked him an awful lot, enough for him to stay at Leo’s side the whole time. At least, that was Leo concluded, noting the crumbled clothes, foul smelling, greasy hair and somewhat dirty face.

“There there,” Leo muttered, rubbing Guang Hong’s back. “I’m alright,” he whispered, trying to soothe the obviously distressed Guang Hong.

Sadly, his attempts to comfort Guang Hong seemed to fire back. He started to sob loudly, his entire shaking while he had buried his head against Leo’s shoulder, fingers clutching his shirt. Well, his hospital shirt, no doubt, noticing the ill fit.

Patiently, Leo waited for Guang Hong to finish his sobfest. Eventually, the loud sobs had dimmed down to soft hiccups. When there were no more tears to spill, Guang Hong finally withdrew from the tight embrace.

If Leo thought Guang Hong had looked dishevelled before, he now looked like a mess. His eyes were puffing and bloodshot, his cheeks were tearstained and bright red. But the relief on Guang Hong’s face was as bright as daylight.

“Hey,” Leo whispered, brushing Guang Hong’s hair out his face. “How’re you faring?”

Guang Hong hiccupped softly, wiping away the leftover tears with his sleeve. “You’re asking me?” he sniffled. “I didn’t crack my skull.”

Leo flinched, his headache started to get worse. “Well, honestly aside from a headache,” Leo rubbed his throbbing head, trying to sooth the pain. “I’m feeling fine- at least better than you.”

Guang Hong’s lips formed an ‘o’, rubbing his neck shyly. “I made it worse, didn’t I?” he paused briefly. “Your headache, I mean.”

Leo smiled sheepishly and nodded curtly, not wanting to move his head too much. “Don’t worry about it,” he hushed as Guang Hong started to look a bit panic-stricken. “It isn’t  _that_ bad,” that was an outright lie, but he was going to everything in his might to make his friend feel better.

“You’re lying,” Guang Hong muttered, a watery smile playing on his lips. “It’s bad, but you’re too kind to admit,” Leo gave his friend a confused look. “You always bite your lip when you’re lying, you know?” Guang Hong explained.

Pressing his lips tightly together, Leo reflected on how Guang Hong could’ve know his little habit. Even his coach hadn’t caught onto it yet, but that was also partly because he didn’t like to lie to her. He didn’t like to lie anyway, sometimes there was no use for lying, it only made things worse.

“I pay attention, if that’s what you’re thinking,” Leo was taken aback by Guang Hong’s dazzling smile, the way his eyes lit up. “I noticed back during Skate America, that each time you said you were fine, you were biting your bottom lip. I started to pay attention to it and- well,” a red flush painted Guang Hong’s ears red.

Realising Guang Hong was standing on the cold floor, feet bare, Leo moved around a bit until there was enough space for his friend to sit on. It would make talking much easier, and it would get Guang Hong’s feet of the cold floor. It would be unfortunate that Guang Hong would get ill because he refused to wear socks.

“Could you,” Leo felt nerves messing up his stomach. He hadn’t even offered Guang Hong the seat yet, though he expected that his friend would figure it out on his own. But maybe he should offer Guang Hong the small bed space first before asking? Or should he-

Shaking his head in disapproval of himself, Leo groaned in pain as his headache grew worse. Mentally, Leo kicked himself just to get to the point. “Could you fill me in on what I’ve missed?”

Shyly and a tad nervous, Guang Hong nodded. To Leo’s relief, Guang Hong took a seat on the bed space he had freed for his friend.

“Don’t worry about anything,” Leo whispered, trying to bring Guang Hong at ease. “I doubt you can hurt my feelings more than my headache is hurting my brain.”

Leo mentally screamed in victory as Guang Hong let out a shy, yet genuine chuckle. Patiently waiting for his friend to gather his breath and nerve, Leo tried to drown the ominous feeling that had started to pool in his stomach. What if the news was terrible?

“Well, for starters, do you recall how you ended up here?” Guang Hong clutched the sheets, a pained look on his face.

“I fainted, right?” despite being pretty sure he remembered correctly, Leo couldn’t help but feel slightly frightened. What if he didn’t remember it correctly? What if something else had happened and his mind was playing tricks on him?

Guang Hong nodded. “You were taken to the hospital more than a week ago after you cracked your skull on the ice- you have missed the NHK Trophy.”

Leo felt his heart swell. “The first thing you talk about is ice skating,” he mutters, trying to get his voice stable. It was adorable, but it didn’t come as much of a surprise to him. They were all ice skating fanatics, after all.

The Chinese stumbled over his next few words, embarrassment clear on his face. Realising the mistake he had made, Leo carefully placed his hand on one of Guang Hong’s tense ones, rubbing his thumb over the surprisingly smooth skin. “It’s okay, I would’ve asked about ice skating sooner or later. Don’t tell anything you’re uncomfortable with- we’ve plenty of time after all.”

“Okay,” Guang Hong hiccupped, wiping away a few stray tears. “In the Cup of China, you became first. The rest of the match was postponed to the next day, your collapse spooked us. Michele was unable to beat your score, though he was still distressed from your sudden collapse, we all were,” Leo felt his friends grip on the sheet loosen. A more peaceful expression started to replace his distressed one. “I got fifth place, not that great to be honest.”

“In Japan, JJ and Minami had managed to snatch a spot in the finals,” he continued. “In the meantime, your coach withdrew you from the competition, even after you managed to place first in the rankings,” Leo saw his friend carefully eyeing him, probably scouting how he would react.

He defiantly was disappointed, but there was nothing he could do about it. There was always next year and the year after. And, of course, there was Worlds, and Four Continents, where he would face a handful of his fellow skaters once again. There were plenty of opportunities, and, thinking rationally, it was the right decision of his coach to withdrew him from the competition.

Noticing that Leo was taking the news rather well, Guang Hong continued. His voice was stronger, more confident. “Next to that, Michele has placed for the finals, and Emil and Yuuri are still in the final, nobody managing to surpass them to kick them out of placing.”

Adding the number of finalists, Leo noticed that there were only five. JJ, Minami, Yuuri, Michele and Emil. He noticed too, by the looks of it, Guang Hong wasn’t planning on telling who the sixth one was.

“And you were number six, right?” Leo asked carefully.

Guang Hong shook his head, his hair falling in disarray on his forehead. “Used to be, I placed seventh, but I withdrew. Seung-gil now has my spot.”

Leo was ready to burst out, scolding his friend for throwing away his chance. But he had no right to do that. Guang Hong clearly had withdrawn for a reason, and the reason probably being Leo himself. His friend probably had stayed behind to look after him, making sure if he would wake up, he wasn’t alone, confused and maybe even scared in the unfamiliar surroundings.

“Why?” he eventually dared to whisper, his thumb gently rubbing his friend's hand. “Why did you stay here for me?”

“Because you’re my friend, silly,” Guang Hong chocked, getting all teary eyed over again. “My good friend, probably even my best friend. It would be lonely, not seeing you daily through Skype, or chat with you. Not that this was much better, but...”

“Best friend, defiantly,” Leo confirmed, flashing his friend- no, best friend- a bright smile. “Thank you, for everything.”

Guang Hong shuffled around uncomfortably, his fingers clutching the sheets once again. “There is more,” he whispered, his face guilt-ridden. “If I told people who is my best friend, it would be you ten out of ten times,” he rambled. “But the feelings I’ve for you are more than just friendship, and I’ve meant to tell you, but I-”

Those words fell all too familiar for Leo. He even mentally could recite word for word what Guang Hong was saying. He even knows how to finish it, so well he knew them.

“I was scared,” Guang Hong looked surprised as they basically were uttering the phrase at the same time. Leo nodded and took hold of one of Guang Hong’s hands, gently pulling the fingers away from the sheet. “I’ve been thinking of, well, you know, the same. Asking you out, asking you if you want to step up our relationship, become romantically involved with each other.”

It was as if he could breathe properly for the first time since forever. Confession his romantic feelings for Guang Hong had been on his to-do list for ages, but he never had the guts to ask. It had been nice, their relationship. The only thing Leo had been craving was holding hands, hugging a bit more and maybe kissing. But he wouldn’t risk his friendship with Guang Hong just to hug a bit more than what friends were supposed to do.

Nervously, Leo waited for Guang Hong to reply.

To Leo’s relief, the first bubble of laughter escaped Guang Hong’s lips. Soon it was followed by a few bubbles of laughter, accompanied by loud, awkward, snorting. Eventually, Guang Hong laughing was never-ending. The only reason it wasn’t echoing trough the room was because he muffled the noise with the help of his hand.

The laughter was the purest thing Leo had heard, the snorting making it all too real. He would have been devastated if Guang Hong would have declined his feelings, especially as he was falling harder for his best friend as the seconds passed by. Since when had Guang Hong been this precious? This genuine?

The laughter grew louder as Guang Hong removed his free hand, the noise filling up the room, bouncing off the walls. “I was so terrified”, he wheezed. “That you would reject my feelings.”

Offering his best friend a reassuring smile, Leo knew exactly how Guang Hong was feeling. And, this was with the knowledge that they knew about each other's sexualities, Guang Hong being solely interested in men while Leo was open for both genders. The entire confession would've been ten times worse if both men though the other was straight.

“So, this means we’ll, you know, start dating?” Leo asked carefully, trying not to be too hopeful.

Confessing your feelings and starting to date each other was an entirely different thing. Though, one thing usually resulted in the other if the feelings were mutual.

“I suppose,” Guang Hong admitted, a bright blush running down his neck. “Though, how much difference will it make? We were already basically dating.”

Leo supposed that Guang Hong wasn’t too far off of the truth. For the last year or so, they had been a big part of each other life. They skyped basically daily, matching up their schedules so they could see each other as much as possible. When they weren’t Skyping or face-timing, they were messaging each other. Leo’s telephone bills hadn’t been too kind to him, but it all have been worth it.

“But now we can hold hands and kiss,” Leo stated as matter-of-factly. “We couldn’t do that before- well, we could, but...”

Images of Victor’s and Yuuri’s somewhat public development of their relationship crossed his mind. Their first kiss was caught on camera, their engagement made rounds on social media, partly due to Phichit’s tendency of oversharing, though it wasn’t like they had been subtle about it either. And so, nobody had been surprised when the two figure skaters finally got married, throwing a big, extravagant party.

“Now we can hold hands without people getting the wrong image,” Guang Hong finished Leo’s sentence, a glint of understanding in his eyes. Somehow, they often were on the same wavelength thoughts-wise, knowing exactly what the other was thinking

“So, that’s a yes?” the moment the words left Leo’s lips, he knew that it almost sounded like a marriage proposal. “I mean- do you want to be, you know...” this wasn’t going as he had planned. Though, honestly, had hadn’t planned anything.

“I would be an idiot to say no- after I was the one starting with confessing my feeling,” Guang Hong rambled, his face resembling an overripe tomato. “Yes, I would love to be your boyfriend.”

If his every growing headache didn't kill him, it would be his rapidly beating heart. He wasn’t sure if it was caused by the nerves of confessing, the excitement of a successful confession or Guang Hong’s dazzling smile. It probably was a combination of all three.

Guang Hong took a more comfortable position, sitting cross-legged on Leo’s bed, his knees bumping against Leo’s legs. A subtle, yet still genuine smile had replaced his dazzling one. “You know,” Guang Hong started, picking up their conversation again. “There is something that I should tell you.”

Slightly worried, Leo pulled a more serious expression and waited for Guang Hong to tell him whatever news he had kept from him. Maybe he was worrying for no reason, or maybe it was the insanely high medical bills, which would worry Leo.

“You mother called, like a thousand times, so eventually, well-” Guang Hong gestured to Leo’s abandoned phone. “I picked up.”

By Guang Hong’s embarrassed expression and Leo’s knowledge of his mother, the phone call was a disaster. His mother probably had started to speak in rapid Spanish, forgetting that nobody in China spoke Spanish, or at least not anyone in this hospital. This probably confused, maybe even scared Guang Hong, who only knew a few Spanish words here and there, which he had picked up from Leo.

“And what did she say?” Leo eyed Guang Hong with slight interest- his mother had a knack of babbling when she was nervous or panic-stricken. Babbling in Spanish, that is.

Guang Hong shrugged helplessly. “No clue,” he admitted. “My Spanish is terrible, and she was talking so fast,” a bright blush clouded his cheeks. “Actually, she gave me such a fright I hung up.”

Chuckling, Leo took Guang Hong’s hand and laced their fingers together. “And did she call after that?”

Leo felt relieved to see Guang Hong nodding, especially with a small smile returning to his boyfriend's face. The second time Guang Hong had dared to pick-up the phone, his mother hadn’t scared him away. At least, that was what he assumed.

“She even started with speaking in English, though she kept on rambling,” Guang Hong frowned briefly, probably recalling the conversation. “She asked a dozen times if you were going to be alright. It was ten minutes in the call when she realised that she had no idea who had picked up,” Leo mirrored Guang Hong’s amused grin. It sounded just like his mother.

“She, apparently, knew who I was,” Guang Hong joked. “Though I was surprised how  _well_ she knew me.”

_Oh_

“What did she say?” Leo asked hesitantly, fearing for what Guang Hong’s reply would be. He might have once or twice gushed about Guang Hong, how incredibly talented his friend was, and how downright adorable he was. But he hadn’t expected his mother to pick up anything he had said.

“Enough to either fill in a restraining order or to sweep you off your feet because it was seriously sweet,” Guang Hong teased.

Taking a little minute to think of a reply, Leo decided to play along due to the lack of a better response. “So, what have you decided on? The restraining order?”

“Well,” by the bright smile on Guang Hong’s face, Leo knew that Guang Hong had picked the latter option. “I was considering a restraining order- but I didn’t want to disappoint your mother after she invited me over for New Year’s Eve dinner.”

Leo felt his jaw drop slightly, surprised by his mother’s invitation. “Mum has invited you over for New Year’s dinner?” Leo spluttered, voicing his surprise.

Thinking a bit longer, several other questions popped up in his mind. “But what about your own family? Don’t you guys celebrate New Year?”

While he loved to have Guang Hong over for New Year’s Eve, there were other important things in life, like family. And surely Guang Hong must consider his own family more important that his new boyfriend.

Guang Hong threw him a disappointed look, matching it with shaking his head. “I celebrate Spring Festival- or more common now as Chinese New Year. It starts around the end of January next year.”

Leo had completely and utterly forgotten about Chinese New Year. “What about the travelling bill? I would love to have you over for New Year’s Eve, but isn’t the trip expensive?”

“Well, me and my parents had a bit of an argument over the money issues,” Guang Hong admitted. “But eventually, with the help of my coach, I persuaded them to let me go.” Guang Hong’s face lit up. “I’ll be training in America till Four Continents is around the corner.”

Thinking through his throbbing headache, Leo was busy adding two and two together. “You’ll be in America for nearly two, entire months?” he asked, unable to contain his excitement.

“Depends,” Guang Hong teased. “I won’t be leaving till the doctor gives you the green light to fly again, so it might be a month-and-a-half, or maybe even less.”

There were still many questions flying through his head, questions he wanted to be answered. But with his headache growing stronger with the minute, Guang Hong growing drowsier and natural light filtering through the thin hospital curtains, he knew that he hadn’t much time left to ask questions. The nurses would rise soon, and they made it almost impossible to have a proper, private conversation.

“Leo,” snapping out his thoughts, he recollided a little when he noticed how close Guang Hong was. When did that happen?

Cold fingers traced his collarbone, his neck until their rested on his right cheek. “I could kiss you right now if your breath weren't so smelly,” Guang Hong whispered, his lips inches away from his own. Right that moment, Leo regretted not leaning in, planting a kiss on his boyfriend's very kissable lips.

Chapped lips were briefly pressed against his forehead before Guang Hong pulled away, hopping off the bed with ease. “The nurses will rise soon,” he said chipperly. “And I doubt that they want to see me draped all over you.”

It seemed that both of them were disappointed by the turn of events. Guang Hong balanced on his tiptoes for a brief moment, before talking. “I’ll fetch a nurse,” he announced, sounding very nervous. “She might give you something against your headache.”

Leo nodded soberly. He knew that there was no way talking Guang Hong out of this. His headache was, admittedly, growing worse. And, though he would take this thought to his grave, it was a great opportunity for Guang Hong to chicken out of a kiss. To be fair, it wasn’t like he had dared to close the few inch gap between them. But maybe the hospital wasn't the right place for a first kiss.

~*~

With his heart basically thumping in his throat, Guang Hong runs down a few corridors’ till he dared to stop. He couldn’t believe he had just bolted out on that- bolted out on kissing Leo. ‘You breath smells’, sure, what a great excuse was that. Not if Guang Hong’s was that good smelling. He barely could recall the last time he brushed his teeth or showered. A few days, probably. He probably smelled like decay, but that hadn't stopped Leo from getting close to him.

Panting slightly, Guang Hong leant against the corridor wall. As it was still early in the morning, there was no-one that would bat an eye at him. Scolding himself mentally, Guang Hong was reflecting on how this was truly a great start of their relationship, him bolting out on a kiss  _he_  had set in motion.

Taking a few deep breathes, Guang Hong readied himself to return back to Leo’s room. He surely had caught Leo off guard, probably even confused him with his odd behaviour. Though the image of explaining Leo the reason why he had bolted out all of the sudden was downright embarrassing. Though, he believed Leo understood why. Up until now, they knew what the other felt, the way they thought. And maybe, Guang Hong didn't even have to explain himself.

“ _Sir, are you okay?_ ” a tired, concerned looking nurse was waving a hand in front of his face. Blinking a few times, trying to get his thoughts ordered, Guang Hong nodded in response.

“ _I'm all right,_ ” he answered, falling easily back into his mother tongue. “ _I- my friend finally woke up. The skater?_ ” he suggested. He had embarrassingly forgotten which room Leo slept in.

“ _The American skater!_ ” the nurse exclaimed. When Guang Hong nodded, the nurse picked up a walky-talky and started to ramble in rapid Mandarin.

Guang Hong knew that Leo had been quite the talk around the hospital. It was a small hospital after all and it was mainly used by the local’s. No-one had expected a foreigner, a somewhat famous foreigner, to end up in their small, humble hospital. In addition to that, Guang Hong was no stranger either for the people, being a familiar face from the television. The chatter, however, had gotten grimmer as time had passed by, nurses whispering amongst each other, questioning if Leo would ever wake-up. It seemed that the news Leo had woken up after all was exciting for the staff.

Feeling very uncomfortable listening to the nurses babbling in Mandarin, Guang Hong slipped away, sneaking back to Leo’s room.

Returning to Leo’s room, Guang Hong quietly opened the door and tip-toed back in the room. Leo hadn’t returned back to sleep as he had hoped. Instead, he was still propped up against his pillow. It seemed that Leo hadn’t noticed him entering, as the American was still scrolling through his phone, a bored expression.

“I’m sorry,” Guang Hong announced, finally catching Leo’s attention. Surprised by his sudden return, Leo fumbled to put his phone away, eventually placing it on his nightstand.

“For bolting out and such,” Guang Hong explained, though he knew it was unnecessary. Leo knew what he was referring to.

“It’s okay,” he felt his ears burning up as Leo offered him a charming smile. “I probably would bolt out to on my first attempt on kissing you,” the honesty surprises him, but it did little to comfort him.

Flustered, Guang Hong blurted the first reply that popped up in his head. “Your breath did smell bad, though,” Leo’s laugh brought a smile on his face.

“I know,” Leo admitted. “But we could always try again, later maybe, or...” hope lingered between Leo’s words.

Walking over to the chair he basically has been sleeping in for the past week, Guang Hong noticed the disappointed look on Leo’s face. While he liked to make another attempt, he knew that the nurses could burst through the door any given moment. And the last thing he wanted to be found in a compromising position, with one of their patients. He surely would be kicked out of the hospital, no matter whenever he was somewhat famous or not.

“Next time,” Guang Hong said loudly, offering Leo a small smile. “Nurses will be bursting through that door any given second, and I’m afraid they won’t enjoy some PDA.”

Leo’s lips parted for a reply, but as soon as a nurse basically bolted in the room, the replay died on the American’s lips. Getting himself comfortable in the visitor’s chair, Guang Hong amusedly watches as the nurse was buzzing around Leo like a bee, trying to speak to him in broken English. Eventually, she had asked Guang Hong to assist her, Guang Hong serving as an interpreter between English and Mandarin.

 

~Epilogue~

Originally, they, he and Leo, had planned to head to America as soon as Leo had been released from the hospital. This, however, had been nearly impossible. Unless they had been ready to throw with money, they had to wait for at least two weeks for their flight, which meant they had to stay in China two more weeks. Well,  _Leo_ had to remain in China for two more weeks, without much money or a hotel to stay at.

Thankfully, Guang Hong’s parents had been kind enough to let Leo crash their place until the date of their flight. The catch? Guang Hong’s parents didn’t know that the two were officially dating and so, any romantic gestures had been kept to the private of Guang Hong’s bedroom. But between training and meddling parent’s, their alone time had been during the late hours of the night, when they couldn't make much noise.

Snuggling against Leo’s side, the two watched the first free-skate performance with excitement. Due to the time zones between France and China, it was well into the evening for the two brunets when the Grand Prix Finals had started. They even had to get special permission from Guang Hong’s mother to watch, as Guang Hong had to get up early the next day, continuing his training for Four Continents.

To neither their surprise, the live stream fell death during the second free-skate, Yuuri’s free-skate. Giving his laptop a disappointed glare, Guang Hong got in a somewhat more practical position and checked his laptop.

“You would think that by now, they would manage to keep up a stable live-connection,” Guang Hong complained half-heartedly, refreshing the page. Nothing, just a black screen with a default apology message written on it.

“We should’ve gone to France after all, seeing the show life,” Guang Hong agreed half-heartedly. It was always easier to complain afterwards.

After five minutes of refreshing the life-stream and getting nothing but a black screen, Guang Hong doubted that the live stream would pick up anytime soon- if not at all. Grumbling under his breath, Guang Hong closed his laptop and placed in carefully on the ground, creating more space on his small, one-person bed.

“We should make the best of it,” Leo muttered, his breath tickling Guang Hong’s neck. “Your parents won’t be bothering us for the next hour anyway.”

Spluttering some inaudible words under his breath, Guang Hong ended up softly punching Leo against the shoulder, adding a definite  _no_ to his answer. “Remember the last time we were fooling around? Mum almost caught us,” a teasing grin formed on his lips. “And unless you  _want_ to be caught and end up sleeping on the couch...” stopping mid-sentence, Guang Hong frowned and looked around the room, trying to detect the source of a sudden, unfamiliar noise.

As the noise got louder, he recognised it as pop music, the kind Leo liked. Leo basically dived for his phone, accepting the call immediately.

“Leo?” Phichit’s familiar voice echoed through the bedroom. It seemed that Leo had managed to put his phone on speaker, without much realising it. “You know that this is FaceTime, right?”

Awkwardly, Leo lowered his phone and placed it on his lap. Phichit’s smiling face took up the majority of the screen, the rest taken up by faint outlines of other people.

“That’s better,” Phichit chimed. “Have you managed to catch Guang Hong? I tried to reach him a few times, but he neither picked up or declined my calls, so I’m clueless.”

Hearing the mention of his name, Guang Hong leant close against Leo so that the camera would pick up both of their faces. “I’m here,” he said, waving at Phichit. “Sorry, I had muted my phone, as it kept being noisy during the live stream.”

“Well, now you’re bringing that up, that’s the reason I called,” Phichit moved his phone, his face disappearing completely out of sight. Instead, the skating rink came into view, with JJ just finishing up his routine. “This way, you can still see the game, though the quality is somewhat bad.”

Thanking their friend, though Guang Hong mentally noted to send Phichit a longer, more proper formulated thanks, and probably adding the promise of food later on. This surely must put a big dent in Phichit's telephone bills.

“When did your live stream dropped out?” Phichit asked, his voice difficult to be heard between the loud chanting of JJ’s name. “After Yuuri’s performance?”

“During Yuuri’s performance,” Leo corrected. “Which was a bummer, he was doing great.”

Guang Hong could almost image Phichit hum in agreement. Though he also believed that Phichit wouldn’t talk bad about Yuuri anyway, Phichit wasn’t the one who talked about his friends behind their backs.

“Well, currently, Michele is still first, JJ second and Yuuri third- oh, Minami’s free-skate is about to start.”

It was Minami’s debut in the finals, and both brunets could clearly see that the energetic Japanese was nervous. But despite his lacklustre technical performance, the crowd was deafening at the end of his performance. It was even so bad that Leo had to lower the volume several notches. Minami finished fourth, despite scoring well during the short skate.

Clapping alongside the crowd, Guang Hong excitedly waited for the next performance. Seung-gil, who initially had placed eight, had shown that he clearly belonged in the finals. His performance had been well planned, matching up with music and even here and there, his stoic expression cracked to accommodate his performance.

A standing ovation followed, Phichit included. This causedPhichit’s phone to tip slightly, almost plunging down to the ground. A series of Thai’s curse words followed as Phichit narrowly saved his phone from the fall of death.

Emil’s performance was breath-taking- enough to make both of them regret not competing alongside the Czech. What Emil lacked in performance he made up in technical difficulty. Even a hand-down didn’t seem to harm his performance, as Emil managed to place first with ease, outplaying Seung-gil who had managed to narrowly snatch the second place, scoring a few points more than Michele.

A short break was scheduled next, in which Phichit had cut off the connection to take pictures of the event. Eventually, ten minutes later, Phichit had called Leo’s phone once again. Accepting to call in a hurried fashion, the two boyfriends leant close to each other, curious to see what was next.

The three medalists stood on the podium, proudly showing off their medals. Emil looked ecstatic, basically shining brighter than the sun. Seung-gil looked pleased with himself, or at least, that was Guang Hong could make up out of the Korean’s expression. What surprised him the most was Michele. The Italian looked happy with his third place, despite originally placing first in the rankings.

“I wish I were there,” Leo muttered, clenching his hands into fists. “I want to punch Michele so badly- I-”

Though Guang Hong didn’t know exactly what had happened, Emil was known for sugar-coating his stories, Emil had told Guang Hong and Leo about his fallout with Michele. It hadn’t surprised him that it had started with Michele’s sister complex. Michele still had believed that Emil was flirting with Sara. But it seemed that both parties finally had snapped, which resulted in Emil indirectly confessing his romantic feelings for the  _other_ Crispino sibling. But that, apparently, didn’t end well, resulting in their fallout.

“Maybe they made up,” Guang Hong suggested, offering Leo a small smile. “Emil isn’t the one to hold grudges, I think...” embarrassedly, he realised he didn’t know Emil that well. But the Czech didn’t seem to be the type that held grudges.

Leo shrugged. “I doubt it- it was a pretty bad fight- and Michele is very stubborn.”

Hearing a clear, audible gasp, Guang Hong returned his gaze to Leo’s phone. Loud squealing and excited roars were the only noise that came from the phone’s speaker, and, honestly, Guang Hong couldn’t blame the onlookers as soon as he saw the footage.

Emil had  _literally_ swept Michele of his podium, twirling the Italian around. In the process, he nearly had hit Seung-gil, who instinctively had jumped out of the way the moment Emil swept Michele of his feet. Eventually, Emil had let Michele go, putting the Italian men next to him on the podium. The noise grew even more deafening when the two medallists exchanged genuine smiles and- oh.

Michele basically had pulled Emil in a kiss. A full, blown-out, kiss and neither of them looked remotely close to stopping. It wasn’t just a peck on the lips like the one Victor and Yuuri had shared, it was PDA at it’s finest level.

“I think they’ve done more than just making up,” Guang Hong was unable to contain his bafflement. He hadn’t seen this coming, though, by the sound of it, nobody had.

The screen shook a bit and Phichit’s excited, awestruck face came into view. “Are you seeing what I’m seeing?” Phichit roared, trying to make himself audible.

Both of them nodded at the same time, mirroring Phichit’s expression.

Phichit once again disappeared out of the picture and returned the camera to the podium. Michele and Emil were no longer  _just_ kissing anymore. They were making out. It had turned in a full-blown make out secession.

There was a muffled scream, probably belonging to Phichit, and the camera zoomed in on Seung-gil. Seung-gil, who still stood on the second place platform, looked downright uncomfortable by the sudden turn of event. For a while, the Korean tried to find somewhere to look at, but between the two kissers and the camera’s, there wasn’t much to look at without feeling remotely comfortable.

The camera shook as Phichit probably waved, followed by a few inaudible words. Seung-gil’s attention moved to Phichit, relief replacing the distressed look on the Korean’s face.

“I feel a meme coming up,” Leo chuckled. “I think people will have fun with Seung-gil’s expression- it was priceless.”

Guang Hong grinned. “While it was good- I admit that,” he admitted. “It is nothing compared to your face when I nearly kissed you.”

Leo’s face grew flustered. “That wasn’t fair, you caught me by surprise!”

A teasing grin on Guang Hong’s lips got Leo even more flustered, enough to make him look away. “And don’t you think Seung-gil was taken by surprise?”

Guang Hong had expected Leo to start sulking, maybe even pouting, or simply returning to the video chat. Up until now, Leo never had a decent response to his teasing. And with Leo only have some weak comebacks, Guang Hong had started to enjoy teasing his boyfriend an awful lot.

Instead, Leo withdrew his arm and placed his phone on the nightstand, the screen facing the nightstand. Moving around on the small bed, Leo eventually had taken his desirable position. A cheeky grin formed on Leo’s lips before he gently pushed against Guang Hong's shoulders, pushing him back. Eventually, Guang Hong's back hit the soft sheets of the bed. “Oh, suddenly taking charge?” Guang Hong teased. “Or-”

His words were muffled by Leo’s lips, who pressed softly down on his. Any comment died in the back of his throat, enjoying the gentle friction between their mouth. They had kissed before, testing the waters, but never had it been this casual, this spontaneous. It always had been asking first and then kiss.

Stopping their kiss briefly, Leo leant slightly back, a teasing smile on his lips. “You’re such a tease,” he breathed, his lips a few centimetres away from Guang Hong’s.

Grinning, Guang Hong heaved his head slightly, pressing their lips together for the second time. Leo’s hands found their way into his hair while he threw his arms around Leo’s neck, pulling the American closer.

Their kisses were short but plentiful, leaving Guang Hong out of breath when Leo finally stopped, leaning back to give him space to breathe.

“That was nice,” Guang Hong murmured, feeling the sensation of kissing tingling on his lips. “We should do that again.”

Leo got himself in a somewhat comfortable position, carefully distributing his weight to stop himself from crushing Guang Hong.

“What if I don’t want to?” Leo teased, pushing Guang Hong’s hair from his forehead.

Guang Hong glared at Leo, though he knew that he looked far from intimidating. “Then I’ve to disappoint your mother and not tag along to America.”

The American seemed to be briefly taken aback, before grinning brightly. “You wouldn’t dare,” Leo smiled, nuzzling Guang Hong’s neck. “She would personally come to China to kidnap you to America.”

Giggling and squirming, Guang Hong half-heartedly tried to push Leo away. “That’s unfair,” he giggled. “You know I’m ticklish.”

He was aware that Leo was plotting his next attack, yet despite that knowledge, Guang Hong let out a very unmanly squeal when Leo blew a raspberry against his neck, catching him off guard big time.

“Leo, what if that leaves a hickey?” Guang Hong felt a rush of panic was over him. His parents had been somewhat sceptical about letting Leo sleep ins room, but eventually they had agreed. But as soon as his parents would find out that they had been... well, messing around, Leo surely would be moved to either the guest room or the couch.

Leo chuckled at his slight state of panic, but he stopped attack Guang Hong’s neck. Instead, Leo returned back to nuzzling his neck, driving him in a fit of giggles.

“You know, I doubt my ma minds,” Leo offered. “Us making out and such- as long as we lock the bedroom door.”

Guang Hong landed a forceful hit on Leo’s chest, making the American withdraw, mimicking an expression of hurt. Though Guang Hong knew that the expression was as real as the pain was real. “Not, but seriously, I would love to introduce you as my boyfriend, if we head to America.”

The tender smile on Leo’s face made his stomach twitch in a pleasant, yet unfamiliar way. Guang Hong had yet to introduce Leo as his boyfriend to his parents, who still thought Leo was just a rink mate and a good friend of their son.

“I don’t think I would mind,” Guang Hong admitted. “I would love to spend some time with your mother, gushing over embarrassing stories about you.”

Leo’s pleased expression soon changed to one of slight fear. “You wouldn’t dare,” he whispered, but they both knew that Guang Hong wasn’t kidding.

Guang Hong’s teasing reply died on his lips the moment Leo had leant down and pulled him another kiss. It was bolder and more forceful than their previous kiss. The kiss lacked its usual tenderness, but Guang Hong was the last one to complain. Tilting his head a bit, he pulled Leo closer by tugging his hair.

The kiss was long, passionate and they grew bolder by the second. A soft moan escapes Leo’s lips when he gently nibbled the American’s bottom lip. Growing more heated and flustered, Guang Hong let go out Leo’s hair and started to clutch on his boyfriend’s shirt, his blunt nails digging into the man’s skin.

A particularly embarrassed moan escaped his own lips when Leo deepened the kiss, the latter’s tongue flicking across his lips.

Startled by loud knocking on Guang Hong’s bedroom door, the two bolted apart. “ _Guang Hong, you promised to go to bed after the finals have ended,”_ his mother’s voice drifted from the hallway.

“ _I’m sorry mum!_ ” he replied, switching to Mandarin in a matter of a second. “ _Good night!_ ”

“Good night to you two,” his mother’s broken English was followed by footsteps that slowly faded away in the distance.

A small smirk was had found its way on Leo’s lips, complimenting his handsome face. “Are we really going to sleep or-” Leo’s teasing earned him a pillow to the head, which he skilfully caught.

“We’re going to sleep.  _I_ have practise tomorrow,” Guang Hong smiled at Leo’s fake pout.

Picking up his phone, Guang Hong unmuted it and activated his alarm for the next day. A series of private messages from Phichit flooded his phone, some only send a handful of minutes ago. But why would Phichit text him, privately? The finals already had ended, and there was nothing Guang Hong could image that they needed to discuss in private, unless-

“Leo?” Guang Hong felt his voice shaking. “Did you finish the call with Phichit?”

Leo’s confused expression soon changed to a horror-struck one. He didn’t have to answer, Guang Hong knew the answer already. Leo hadn’t. This meant that Phichit of all people had heard their conversation, the two of them sweet-talking and teasing each other. And maybe even-

Dramatically, Guang Hong buried his head against Leo’s chest. “We’re dead. Phichit now has so much stuff on us that we  _have_ to join his Phichit on Ice.”

Leo chuckled and patted Guang Hong in a soothing manner. “Don’t worry, we at least won’t be alone- I think Phichit has enough shit on people that he could make an entire legion of professional ice skaters for his Phichit on Ice.”

Snorting louder than planned, Guang Hong curled up against Leo.

“We should go to bed,” Leo suggested. “ _You_ have training tomorrow, and there is no use fretting about it, what happened has happened.”

Leo's adoring smile basically melted away all the worry that had been clouding Guang Hong’s mind. Realising that Leo was right, and that  _had_ training early next morning, he settled down for bed.

Changing and brushing their teeth in a hurry, the two squeezed themselves in Guang Hong’s small, one-person bed. After making sure his alarm was actually activated, Guang Hong curled up against Leo, who happily draped his arm around Guang Hong’s waist. Like plenty of nights before, they cuddled a bit before eventually drifting off to sleep. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for making it this far! I'm not overly satisfied with the ending- but after rewriting it three times, I'm done with it.
> 
> I hope it wasn't too awkward, as I edited and cut the hell out of this piece. Now, the usual disclaimers. I'm not a native English reader, speaker or writer, so bear with my silly language mistakes. Per usual, I struggle with writing dialogue, so it's probably as cheesy as hell. If there are any mistakes, feel free to point them out. I always strive for improvement. And I'm sure that there are plenty of mistakes.
> 
> Extra notes:
> 
> I hope that I didn't butcher up any ice-skating related terms or rules. I did some research, as like how the placing works points-wise, but I've no idea how it works with injuries and people dropping out. This is solely based on my own experience with competitive sports and rankings. (But this is table-tennis, so yeah, completely different from ice-skating)
> 
> Secondly, I'm curious if anyone wants the EmiMike part of the story? I already have planned their story out, but I still have to dig a bit more into their characters to write them properly. (Though I probably will butcher up their characterisation anyway. At least, I feel like that when I write characters that aren't my own. I surely butchered up Leo's and Guang Hong's characterisation- probably everyone’s characterisation.)


End file.
